Nearing the gap between Paris as a student, Paris as an intern

We’ve made a list. A list of the must sees and must dos for the next three weeks of our program. For my friends, the end of the three weeks marks the end of their abroad experience. A goodbye, for now.

For me, the coming three weeks will, too, end my four months of study abroad. But it will also be a start to life in Paris as a full- time intern.  

Part of me worries that I’ll be lonely this summer—what with no close friends to serve to enhance the experiences. Part of me feels a determination to meet new people. Perhaps befriend those at the office. Perhaps hop on the meetup.com fad. There’s an American ex- pat magazine named FUSAC. I used to scour the miniscule print of each monthly edition—searching for a summer job, a summer home, summer plans. But there’s a corner for those looking to meet others. Other Americans. Who knows? Maybe I’ll take advantage of that too.

Somehow, it’s all got me thinking of life post college. Perhaps it's seeing the Facebook statuses flood my feed—statuses of halfway done with college, a year left, totally complete.

Here we are. Here I am. Abroad, for junior year. A year left of school and then off to the real world. I started panicking last night, worried that I wouldn’t find a job that would keep me in D.C.—potentially move me to N.Y.—that would allow me to report for a paper.

A year from now and life as we know will change, once more. And unlike three years ago with the start of college, it’s not a winding road with a set path to get you from A to B. You’re lucky if you find A once you graduate. And chances are, you’ll come across E without ever finding B, C and D.

Staying in Paris is a good start. I’m here to work—here to adapt to a city on a different level than that as a student. 


But for now, I've got three weeks to enjoy Paris as a student. And really, focusing on the summer and year ahead, does little in gearing my appreciation for the moment of now, my experience of today.

Three weeks left? It's good enough reason to stop with the babble and get going with the Paris- student- bucket list.